By Daniel Howden

Published: 19 April 2006

There is a growing shadow being cast over Islam's holiest site. Only a few metres from the walls of the Grand Mosque in Mecca skyscrapers are reaching further into the sky, slowly blocking out the light. These enormous and garish newcomers now dwarf the elegant black granite of the Kaaba, the focal point of the four million Muslims' annual Haj pilgrimage.

The tower blocks are the latest and largest evidence of the destruction of Islamic heritage that has wiped almost all of the historic city from the physical landscape. As revealed in The Independent last August,the historic cities of Mecca and Medina are under an unprecedented assault from religious zealots and their commercial backers.

Writing in response to the article, Prince Turki al-Faisal said that Saudi Arabia was spending more than $19bn (£11bn) preserving and maintaining these two holy sites. "[We are aware] how important the preservation of this heritage is, not just to us but to the millions of Muslims from around the world who visit the two holy mosques every year. It is hardly something we are going to allow to be destroyed."

This rebuttal sits at odds with a series of previously unseen photographs, published today, that document the demolition of key archaeological sites and their replacement with skyscrapers.

Saudi religious authorities have overseen a decades-long demolition campaign that has cleared the way for developers to embark on a building spree of multi-storey hotels, restaurants, shopping centres and luxury apartment blocks on a scale unseen outside Dubai. The driving force behind this historical demolition is Wahhabism ­ the austere state faith that the House of Saud brought with it when Ibn Saud conquered the Arabian peninsula in the 1920s.

The Wahhabis live in fanatical fear that places of historical or religious interest could give rise to alternative forms of pilgrimage or worship. Their obsession with combating idolatry has seen them flatten all evidence of a past that does not agree with their interpretation of Islam.

Irfan Ahmed al-Alawi, the chairman of the Islamic Heritage Foundation, set up to help protect the holy sites, says the case of the grave of Amina bint Wahb, the mother of the Prophet, found in 1998, is typical of what has happened. "It was bulldozed in Abwa and gasoline was poured on it. Even though thousands of petitions throughout the Muslim world were sent, nothing could stop this action."

Today there are fewer than 20 structures remaining in Mecca that date back to the time of the Prophet 1,400 years ago. The litany of this lost history includes the house of Khadijah, the wife of the Prophet, demolished to make way for public lavatories; the house of Abu Bakr, the Prophet's companion, now the site of the local Hilton hotel; the house of Ali-Oraid, the grandson of the Prophet, and the Mosque of abu-Qubais, now the location of the King's palace in Mecca.

Yet the same oil-rich dynasty that pumped money into the Taliban regime as they blew up the Bamiyan Buddhas in Afghanistan six years ago has so far avoided international criticism for similar acts of vandalism at home. Mai Yamani, author of The Cradle of Islam, said it was time for other Muslim governments to ignore the al-Sauds' oil wealth and clout and speak out. " What is alarming about this is that the world doesn't question the al-Sauds' custodianship of Islam's two holy places. These are the sites that are of such importance to over one billion Muslims and yet their destruction is being ignored," she said. "When the Prophet was insulted by Danish cartoonists thousands of people went into the streets to protest. The sites related to the Prophet are part of their heritage and religion but we see no concern from Muslims."

Lay people, and in some cases even US senators could be forgiven for thinking that the House of Saud has been the guardian of the two holy places for time immemorial. In fact, it is only 80 years since the tribal chieftain Ibn Saud occupied Mecca and Medina. The House of Saud has been bound to Wahhabism since the 18th century religious reformer Mohamed Ibn Abdul-Wahab signed a pact with Mohammed bin Saud in 1744. Wahab's warrior zealots helped to conquer a kingdom for the tribal chieftains. The House of Saud got its wealth and power, and the clerics got the vehicle of state they needed to spread their fundamentalist ideology around the world. The ruler of this fledgling kingdom needed the legitimacy afforded by declaring himself " custodian of the two holy places".

But that legitimacy has come at an enormous price for the diversity of Muslims who look to Mecca for guidance. Once in charge, the Wahhabists wasted little time in censoring the Haj. As early as 1929, Egyptian pilgrims were refused permission to celebrate the colourful Mahmal rites and more than 30 were killed. At the time Egypt severed diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia. Few governments have stood up to them since.

Instead, the homogenisation of Islam's holiest sites was allowed to accelerate into a demolition campaign that now threatens the birthplace of the Prophet itself. The site survived the early reign of Ibn Saud 50 years ago when the architect for the planned library persuaded the absolute ruler to allow him to preserve the remains under the new structure. Saudi authorities now plan to "update" the site with a car park that would mean concreting over the remains.

"The al-Sauds need to rein in the Wahhabists now," warns Dr Yamani. "Mecca used to be a symbol of Muslim diversity and it needs to be again." But with oil prices and profits, at record highs, there is little sign the House of Saud is listening.

Sami Angawi, a Hijazi architect who has devoted his life to a largely doomed effort to preserve what remains of the history of the world's greatest pilgrimage sites, said that the final farewell to Mecca was imminent. " What we are witnessing are the last days of Mecca and Medina."

Mecca's skyline

Giant cranes and half-constructed skyscrapers tower over the Grand Mosque in Mecca. Six new property developments, including the Bin Laden group's Zam Zam Tower, are transforming the character of Islam's holiest city

ISLAMIC HERITAGE FOUNDATION

Mountain of light

The mountain of light, or al-Nour, is next in the Wahhabis' sights. Home to the Hira'a cave, it was here that the Prophet is said to have received the first verses of the Koran. Hardline clerics want it destroyed to stop pilgrims visiting. At the foot of the hill there is a Wahhabi fatwa: " The Prophet Mohamed (PBUH) did not permit us to climb on to this hill, not to pray here, not to touch stones, and tie knots on trees..."

ISLAMIC HERITAGE FOUNDATION

The Prophet's wife's grave

The ruins in the foreground are the remains of the grave of the Prophet's wife, Al Baqi, destroyed in the 1950s. The mutawi religious police are present night and day to prevent anyone placing flowers on the site, or even praying in the proximity of the graves

THE ISLAMIC HERITAGE FOUNDATION

Al Oraid Mosque

The 1,200-year-old mosque, site of the grave of the Prophet's grandson al-Oraid, is seen here being dynamited. Gathered around the site are Saudi religious police with their distinctive red scarves, who appear to be celebrating

THE ISLAMIC HERITAGE FOUNDATION

There is a growing shadow being cast over Islam's holiest site. Only a few metres from the walls of the Grand Mosque in Mecca skyscrapers are reaching further into the sky, slowly blocking out the light. These enormous and garish newcomers now dwarf the elegant black granite of the Kaaba, the focal point of the four million Muslims' annual Haj pilgrimage.

The tower blocks are the latest and largest evidence of the destruction of Islamic heritage that has wiped almost all of the historic city from the physical landscape. As revealed in The Independent last August,the historic cities of Mecca and Medina are under an unprecedented assault from religious zealots and their commercial backers.

Writing in response to the article, Prince Turki al-Faisal said that Saudi Arabia was spending more than $19bn (£11bn) preserving and maintaining these two holy sites. "[We are aware] how important the preservation of this heritage is, not just to us but to the millions of Muslims from around the world who visit the two holy mosques every year. It is hardly something we are going to allow to be destroyed."

This rebuttal sits at odds with a series of previously unseen photographs, published today, that document the demolition of key archaeological sites and their replacement with skyscrapers.

Saudi religious authorities have overseen a decades-long demolition campaign that has cleared the way for developers to embark on a building spree of multi-storey hotels, restaurants, shopping centres and luxury apartment blocks on a scale unseen outside Dubai. The driving force behind this historical demolition is Wahhabism ­ the austere state faith that the House of Saud brought with it when Ibn Saud conquered the Arabian peninsula in the 1920s.

The Wahhabis live in fanatical fear that places of historical or religious interest could give rise to alternative forms of pilgrimage or worship. Their obsession with combating idolatry has seen them flatten all evidence of a past that does not agree with their interpretation of Islam.

Irfan Ahmed al-Alawi, the chairman of the Islamic Heritage Foundation, set up to help protect the holy sites, says the case of the grave of Amina bint Wahb, the mother of the Prophet, found in 1998, is typical of what has happened. "It was bulldozed in Abwa and gasoline was poured on it. Even though thousands of petitions throughout the Muslim world were sent, nothing could stop this action."

Today there are fewer than 20 structures remaining in Mecca that date back to the time of the Prophet 1,400 years ago. The litany of this lost history includes the house of Khadijah, the wife of the Prophet, demolished to make way for public lavatories; the house of Abu Bakr, the Prophet's companion, now the site of the local Hilton hotel; the house of Ali-Oraid, the grandson of the Prophet, and the Mosque of abu-Qubais, now the location of the King's palace in Mecca.

Yet the same oil-rich dynasty that pumped money into the Taliban regime as they blew up the Bamiyan Buddhas in Afghanistan six years ago has so far avoided international criticism for similar acts of vandalism at home. Mai Yamani, author of The Cradle of Islam, said it was time for other Muslim governments to ignore the al-Sauds' oil wealth and clout and speak out. " What is alarming about this is that the world doesn't question the al-Sauds' custodianship of Islam's two holy places. These are the sites that are of such importance to over one billion Muslims and yet their destruction is being ignored," she said. "When the Prophet was insulted by Danish cartoonists thousands of people went into the streets to protest. The sites related to the Prophet are part of their heritage and religion but we see no concern from Muslims."

Lay people, and in some cases even US senators could be forgiven for thinking that the House of Saud has been the guardian of the two holy places for time immemorial. In fact, it is only 80 years since the tribal chieftain Ibn Saud occupied Mecca and Medina. The House of Saud has been bound to Wahhabism since the 18th century religious reformer Mohamed Ibn Abdul-Wahab signed a pact with Mohammed bin Saud in 1744. Wahab's warrior zealots helped to conquer a kingdom for the tribal chieftains. The House of Saud got its wealth and power, and the clerics got the vehicle of state they needed to spread their fundamentalist ideology around the world. The ruler of this fledgling kingdom needed the legitimacy afforded by declaring himself " custodian of the two holy places".

But that legitimacy has come at an enormous price for the diversity of Muslims who look to Mecca for guidance. Once in charge, the Wahhabists wasted little time in censoring the Haj. As early as 1929, Egyptian pilgrims were refused permission to celebrate the colourful Mahmal rites and more than 30 were killed. At the time Egypt severed diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia. Few governments have stood up to them since.

Instead, the homogenisation of Islam's holiest sites was allowed to accelerate into a demolition campaign that now threatens the birthplace of the Prophet itself. The site survived the early reign of Ibn Saud 50 years ago when the architect for the planned library persuaded the absolute ruler to allow him to preserve the remains under the new structure. Saudi authorities now plan to "update" the site with a car park that would mean concreting over the remains.

"The al-Sauds need to rein in the Wahhabists now," warns Dr Yamani. "Mecca used to be a symbol of Muslim diversity and it needs to be again." But with oil prices and profits, at record highs, there is little sign the House of Saud is listening.

Sami Angawi, a Hijazi architect who has devoted his life to a largely doomed effort to preserve what remains of the history of the world's greatest pilgrimage sites, said that the final farewell to Mecca was imminent. " What we are witnessing are the last days of Mecca and Medina."

Mecca's skyline

Giant cranes and half-constructed skyscrapers tower over the Grand Mosque in Mecca. Six new property developments, including the Bin Laden group's Zam Zam Tower, are transforming the character of Islam's holiest city

ISLAMIC HERITAGE FOUNDATION

Mountain of light

The mountain of light, or al-Nour, is next in the Wahhabis' sights. Home to the Hira'a cave, it was here that the Prophet is said to have received the first verses of the Koran. Hardline clerics want it destroyed to stop pilgrims visiting. At the foot of the hill there is a Wahhabi fatwa: " The Prophet Mohamed (PBUH) did not permit us to climb on to this hill, not to pray here, not to touch stones, and tie knots on trees..."

ISLAMIC HERITAGE FOUNDATION

The Prophet's wife's grave

The ruins in the foreground are the remains of the grave of the Prophet's wife, Al Baqi, destroyed in the 1950s. The mutawi religious police are present night and day to prevent anyone placing flowers on the site, or even praying in the proximity of the graves

THE ISLAMIC HERITAGE FOUNDATION

Al Oraid Mosque

The 1,200-year-old mosque, site of the grave of the Prophet's grandson al-Oraid, is seen here being dynamited. Gathered around the site are Saudi religious police with their distinctive red scarves, who appear to be celebrating

You are loosing steam here. You and your ilks did benefit from Saudi filthy regime more than any other group. They did more than Shadow stuff to Islam if you care. Since 9/11 they dried up Islamic sources as your dahlan's did to the revival effort of Muhammad Ibnu Abdulwahab. If you want to preserve all these heritage!! places go to UNESCO/Congress and have a drive booth as Karzai's did.

What I want to ask you is where Sh. Muhammad Ibnu Abdulwahab gone wrong in Towhid?!!. If you have correct answer to my repeated querries please post here. If not then continue this steaming business.

You are loosing steam here. You and your ilks did benefit from Saudi filthy regime more than any other group. They did more than Shadow stuff to Islam if you care. Since 9/11 they dried up Islamic sources as your dahlan's did to the revival effort of Muhammad Ibnu Abdulwahab. If you want to preserve all these heritage!! places go to UNESCO/Congress and have a drive booth as Karzai's did.

You did not state a single thing to even try and defend the actions of these common louts and uneducated thugs. You are so intellectually bankrupt you are unable to offer any serious reply, and you are ashamed by the way your group looks, you are desperately trying to deflect. You are so out of gas.

What I want to ask you is where Sh. Muhammad Ibnu Abdulwahab gone wrong in Towhid?!!. If you have correct answer to my repeated querries please post here. If not then continue this steaming business.

Abu Mujahid

irrelevant tautological drivel. The thread is not about tawheed, the thread is about the fruits of your barbaric, deviated secterian movement. Let us judge your deviance by the fruits that stem from the roots of ignorance. In the broader spectrum, this piece really shows the true colors in action of your sect. You can try and bury the true nature and actions of the common criminals who made up your initial movement, but the tree of your sect still bears the fruit of what you really are.

A feeling of discouragement when you slip up is a sure sign that you put your faith in deeds. -Ibn 'Ata'llah
http://www.sunnipath.com
http://www.sunniforum.com/forum/
http://www.pt-go.com/

I think at least moderators should not get involved in verbal abuse. Instead of discussing Wahhabism or Aal Saud dynasty we should discuss what salafis believes in, how is their approach towards understanding Quran and Hadith.

Also, you should not stereotype eveybody who praises Mohammed Ibn Abdul Wahhab as just a Wahhabi group..

You call Osama as Wahabi and Ibn Baaz also as wahhabi..Do you have any idea how different is their approach towards Aal Saud dynasty or America? Instead of just giving so many articles against a "Vague term of Wahahbism" which has different meaning for different people can't we just discuss principles.

I think at least moderators should not get involved in verbal abuse. Instead of discussing Wahhabism or Aal Saud dynasty we should discuss what salafis believes in, how is their approach towards understanding Quran and Hadith.

Also, you should not stereotype eveybody who praises Mohammed Ibn Abdul Wahhab as just a Wahhabi group..

You call Osama as Wahabi and Ibn Baaz also as wahhabi..Do you have any idea how different is their approach towards Aal Saud dynasty or America? Instead of just giving so many articles against a "Vague term of Wahahbism" which has different meaning for different people can't we was just discuss principles.

Brother i think we are in minority and might never be heard because the shouting from both sides is quite loud. But i think what you are asking for might be in another one of those threads in this section.

Wassalam

Say: (O Muhammad) If you love Allah, then follow me, Allah will love you and forgive you your faults, and Allah is Forgiving, MercifuL

I think at least moderators should not get involved in verbal abuse. Instead of discussing Wahhabism or Aal Saud dynasty we should discuss what salafis believes in, how is their approach towards understanding Quran and Hadith.

Also, you should not stereotype eveybody who praises Mohammed Ibn Abdul Wahhab as just a Wahhabi group..

You call Osama as Wahabi and Ibn Baaz also as wahhabi..Do you have any idea how different is their approach towards Aal Saud dynasty or America? Instead of just giving so many articles against a "Vague term of Wahahbism" which has different meaning for different people can't we just discuss principles.

You live in the neighborhood to these desert thief kings, may be able to explain their behavior. I think they have no principles cuz these two faced Saudis have a face for their masters in the west that is so subservient that it is not funny.The other is for the rest of the subjugated Muslims in the east which is so sanctimonious that is sickening. It really doesn't matter any longer what one calls it, what is the use of discussing their principles when there are none left for them to practice no one cares any more after the Iraqi fiasco. The Arabs are just too damn greedy. I would agree wholeheartedly with your statement different meaning for different people which so true in Saudiland.What I remember is that they have become a true believers in the capitalism and they are headlong in a race to prove to the Jews and the rest west that were just not the ignorant sand pounding camel jockeys but sophisticated business elite all their lives. In order to wipe the slate clean they are using the Tauhid stick to destroy the heritage artifacts and replicate the Las Vegas model on the top of Mecca and Medina. They are suffering from the disease called the brown sahib's disease left in the colonies. All the rich and powerful say e.g., in subcontinent /Pakistan would like to live with the grandeur of the Mogul Emperors but they can't be one.A friend worked in the Saudi palaces and relates the destruction of whatever faith he had looking at them.This religion forced on the Arabia is superficial and the OBL is it's the reactionary side. Another friend worked in American Embassy and his details are no testaments of great Saudi character he came across in his parties. According to him the society is gone down that even the Saudis have started to say the Yahudes are better than Sauds that should tell you something about the principles.

The unearned money causes similar problems in society as you will find in case of Paris Hilton. At least she was white but still couldn't escape the prison.

The billions in kickback for Prince Bandar is talk of the town how do you like them apples.You can talk about the selective tuwheed so much, after some times it gets boring fairy tales.

Why did the Imam of Makkah went to the Pakistani Dictator's palace-- a known boozer and womanizer working for the zionists and offer prayers at the presidential palace while the nation is up in arms against for his arbitrary dismissal of their Chief Justice.

What principled school this Imam belongs to? What kind of judgment this Imam will provide to the aggrieved masses if need be?The talk is cheap action speaks louder than words, think about it!

Andalus brother, please answer this question >>> have you received any revelation informing you that Muhammad ibn Abdul Wahab and the ones who praise him are all dwellers of hell? your confidence and hatered indicates that you must hve received this revelation but if not, then why do you act st**id? do you think it makes you look very knowledgeable? its truly funny wen u call others barbaric..

Every one who can see has a sight but everyone who has a sight doesnt have an insight.

Andalus brother, please answer this question >>> have you received any revelation informing you that Muhammad ibn Abdul Wahab and the ones who praise him are all dwellers of hell? your confidence and hatered indicates that you must hve received this revelation but if not, then why do you act st**id? do you think it makes you look very knowledgeable? its truly funny wen u call others barbaric..

If revelation was required to take knowledge, observable knowledge based upon critical analysis, etc, etc, then we would not have history, or math, or chemistry. I do not need revelatio to determine that the founders of whabism were barbaric.That is a matter of history, and the fuits of their labor.

A feeling of discouragement when you slip up is a sure sign that you put your faith in deeds. -Ibn 'Ata'llah
http://www.sunnipath.com
http://www.sunniforum.com/forum/
http://www.pt-go.com/

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